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VISA Purchase Card Program

The VA will issue credit cards to VA employees to facilitate the acquisition of laboratory items. The VA employee must attend the initial training class to obtain the VISA card as well as all subsequent training.

The spending limit for any single order is $3,000, including shipping and handling costs (S&H). Services may be purchased up to $2,500. The monthly card limit is based on the supply balance available in the grant. Orders that exceed $3,000, including equipment, furniture, or IT, must be submitted to the Research Office for placement.

The following CANNOT be purchased on VA credit cards, regardless of price:

Printing and reproduction (including services from Kinkos). Manuscript reprints are an allowable expense.

**PLEASE NOTE: Cardholders must reconcile weekly to retain their card.

How to get a PVAMC R&D VISA card:

Applicant must be a VA employee.

The funding investigator must initial the form in the upper right hand corner if the applicant is not the funding investigator

The form should be brought to Bldg 101, Room 502 for completion. She will submit the form to Fiscal Service.

The applicant will meet with Research Service budget staff for additional training before the card will be issued.

VISA Cardholder responsibilities:

Attend all appropriate acquisition training

Sign VA form 0232, Government-wide Purchase Card Certification, to become the contracting officer of record for any purchase made with the card

Comply with all acquisition regulations, Federal, VA and local, including the VA Contracting Hierarchy

Verify adequate funds prior to making a purchase

Comply with the $3,000 single purchase limit. Only orders under $3,000, including shipping and handling, can be ordered on the VISA. Splitting large orders over $3,000 into smaller orders is expressly forbidden.

Do not order IT on the VISA card. IT includes computers, monitors, printers, faxes, memory, components, cables, or software. Toner, cartridges, and CDs are acceptable supply charges.

Upon placing the order, complete an order form. The order form must be completed accurately. The price should be exact since the order has already been placed. It must also include S&H costs. The order form must include the contact information, funding investigator and vendor information. The vendor phone number is mandatory.

Immediately fax the order to R&D Service at 503-721-1046 upon placing an order. All VISA orders must be entered into the computer within 24 hours. Please do not stockpile the orders until the end of the day.

Reconcile charges weekly to ensure timely reconciliations. All vendor charges must be reconciled within 10 calendar days. Delinquent reconciliations are reported monthly to the Medical Center Director and VISN.

Keep the card secure, i.e., kept in a locked cabinet or on your person. Only the cardholder should have access to the card and its number.

Ordering Information

Office Supplies

Fax all order requests to Research Service Administrative Office at x51046 or 503-721-1046.

VIP: Office supplies should be ordered through Veterans Imaging Products Inc (VIP), a small veteran-owned business. The only exceptions are toner, ink and ribbon - which should be ordered through ABM. Corporate Express will still provide customer support and delivery services. Supplies can be ordered online once the user has registered. Please contact R&D Purchasing staff for ordering and registration instructions. (Tier 1 vendor)

ABM: Printer/Fax toners, ink and ribbon should be ordered through ABM. Toners can be ordered either online or via the telephone after the user has registered. Please contact R&D Purchasing staff for ordering and registration instructions. (Tier 1 vendor)

Order Form (39KB, Excel)If the item is ordered on an individual's credit card, check "Ordered on my VISA". If the office needs to place the order with the vendor, check "Please Order on Office VISA". If an order is more than $3,000, the R&D Administrative office will automatically place the order with the purchasing agent. VA Headquarters has mandated that all computer and computer related items be approved by VA Central Office before purchasing (see IT).

If the order exceeds $3,000, including shipping & handling, a sole source justification (44KB, MSWord) must be submitted with the order.Any order without a sole source justification is subject to the bidding process in contracting service.

Subject Reimbursement Forms (10-7078) (421KB, PDF)This form is used for payment of subjects taking part in research studies. A signed consent form must be turned in before a subject can receive funds for taking part in a research study. Fill out the subject reimbursement form for each research subject, making sure that all shaded areas are filled in. Bring the form to Purchasing staff in the Research Service office for signature. The research subject then takes the original form to the agent cashier for payment - or, if requested, the check can be mailed directly to their home.

Intergovernmental Personnel Act (IPA) Agreement

The Intergovernmental Personnel Act (IPA) agreement is the mechanism used for securing professional and technical services from OHSU by the Portland VA Research Service. IPAs are managed by the ACOS administrative office and OHSU Sponsored Project administration. The principal investigator (PI) initiates an IPA to procure personnel services necessary to their VA study. The assignment should be agreed upon by the PI, the person whose services are desired, and the OHSU department prior to initiating the paperwork. The PI is responsible for completing the required paperwork with current forms as listed below.

IPA assignments should be made for purposes which the Federal agency head, or his or her designee, determines are of mutual concern and benefit to the Federal agency and to the non-Federal organization. Each proposed assignment (IPA) should be carefully examined to ensure that it is for sound public purposes and furthers the goals and objectives of the participating organizations. Assignments arranged to meet the personal interest of employees, to circumvent personnel ceilings or to avoid unpleasant personnel decisions are contrary to the spirit and interest of the mobility assignment program (IPAs).

Answers to Frequently Asked Questions:

IPA agreements can be made for up to 2 years and may be part-time or full-time. The assignment may be extended for an additional 2 years less 1 month. IPA assignments of less than 6 months are discouraged.

IPA agreements are based on fixed FTE or number of hours per week. Assignments are not variable and do not fluctuate.

An employee that has served 4 continuous years without a break cannot be assigned to another IPA without as least a 12-month return to his/her regular employer. Successive assignments without a break in service of at least 60 calendar days are regarded as continuous service.

IPAs are intended for skilled personnel only. IPAs cannot be established for administrative staff or principal investigators. Under no circumstances should IPA agreements be used as a mechanism for hiring clinical staff or as a substitute for scarce medical specialist, sharing, commercial item or other clinical services contract.

Non-VA employees must be employed in a permanent position by their organization for at least 90 days to be eligible for an IPA assignment.

The investigator is responsible for completing the required paperwork and obtaining employee and OHSU Departmental and Dean signatures. Paperwork must be submitted to the Supervisory Budget Analyst's office at least 60 days prior to the requested start date.

Due to recent changes in the VA fiscal system, the start date of the IPAs should be the first of each month. OHSU has requested that termination dates occur at the end of the month.

Costs of the IPA are restricted to basic pay, supplemental pay, and fringe benefits. The VA is not authorized to issue reimbursement for indirect or administrative costs associated with the assignment. This includes charges for administrative support, supplies, computer time, etc.

An IPA may be terminated at any time at the option of the Federal or non-Federal government. When terminating the agreement before the original completion date requires a written 30-day notice to all parties involved. OHSU has requested that termination dates occur at the end of the month.